In a new report, the Brazilian Sugarcane Producers Association (Orplana) said that between August 23 and September 10, more than 3,000 fires were identified, burning more than 181,000 hectares in sugarcane areas and sugarcane regrowth areas in the state of São Paulo. The figures were released on Friday, the 13th.
The loss is estimated at more than R$1.2 billion due to the effects of the fires on existing sugarcane, rats and poor quality of raw materials, as well as management and replanting costs. Previous estimates were for losses of R$800 million. In the number of hectares burned, Orplana does not include APP areas, legal reserves, roadsides, pastures, etc.
The entity says it “remains alert to the effects of fires affecting rural properties in the state of São Paulo and also in other areas of Brazil.”
“The database that Orplana uses is a set of satellites that scan the areas, including monitoring fires. So, using spectrometry you can see the difference between areas where there is sugar cane and areas where there is no sugar cane, and also what happened to the sugar cane, whether it burned, whether it changed color or remained the same, in addition to field verification,” explains the organization’s CEO, José Guilherme Nogueira.
Nogueira notes that the producer is still “picking up the pieces” to understand the next steps. “The cost of implementing a sugarcane field regeneration is around R$13,500 per hectare. Even if the regrowth remains viable, and does not require replanting, it may require management and nutrients, which will also have an impact on costs. This is because the straw layer there helps control weeds and retain water and organic matter in the soil,” he explains. “In addition, the regrowth of sugarcane that was three or four months old turned into dust, causing ash to accumulate, which will also require management in the area,” he adds.
For the entity, which includes 35 sugarcane supplier associations and represents more than 12,000 producers, due to the losses, sugarcane will only be able to grow again when the rains fall uniformly and intensely. “The planting rate, the area that will be available for harvesting next year, and the dry climate scenario, could already influence the future harvest, but it is still too early to make any predictions, as we will depend on how the rains and the climate come in the next few months,” concludes Noguera. Orplana
